A Minor Pentatonic Scale — All 5 Box Positions on Guitar

NotesA · C · D · E · G
Intervals1 · ♭3 · 4 · 5 · ♭7
Relative majorC major pentatonic

A minor pentatonic has five notes — A, C, D, E and G — and a bluesy, soulful sound used across rock, blues and soul. It is the scale most guitarists learn first: Box 1 sits at the 5th fret with the root under your first finger, and the same shapes work in every other key. It shares every note with C major pentatonic: treat A as home and it sounds minor, treat C as home and it sounds major.

A Minor Pentatonic on the Full Neck

Root (A)Box 1Box 2Box 3Box 4Box 5
A minor pentatonic — all 5 box positions from the open strings to fret 15

Red dots are the root, A. Double-ringed dots are shared by two boxes — that is where you slide from one box into the next.

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A minor pentatonic printable chart, all 5 boxes
Free printable
A Minor Pentatonic chart (PDF)

All 5 boxes on one page with note names, plus a 7-day practice plan. Print it and keep it by your guitar.

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The 5 A Minor Pentatonic Box Positions

Each box holds all five notes in a four-to-five-fret span. New to the scale? Learn Box 1 first, then add the boxes on either side of it.

Box 1 — Frets 5–8

A minor pentatonic Box 1 on guitar

The root box. A is at fret 5 on the high e string, fret 7 on the D string and fret 5 on the low E string.

Box 2 — Frets 7–10

A minor pentatonic Box 2 on guitar

A is at fret 10 on the B string and fret 7 on the D string.

Box 3 — Frets 9–13

A minor pentatonic Box 3 on guitar

The widest box — it spans five frets. A is at fret 10 on the B string and fret 12 on the A string.

Box 4 — Open position · frets 0–3

A minor pentatonic Box 4 on guitar

Open position — the open strings are part of the box, so let them ring. A is at fret 2 on the G string and the open A string.

Box 5 — Frets 2–5

A minor pentatonic Box 5 on guitar

A is at fret 5 on the high e string, fret 2 on the G string and fret 5 on the low E string.

How to Learn A Minor Pentatonic, Step by Step

  1. Box 1 first (frets 5–8). Play it up and down with a metronome at 60–80 BPM until you can do it without looking. Start and end on A.
  2. Add Box 2 (frets 7–10). It shares notes with Box 1 — use those shared notes to slide between the two.
  3. Learn Boxes 3, 4 and 5 the same way, one at a time, always connecting each new box to one you already know.
  4. Use it over music. Put on a backing track in A minor or a blues in A and improvise with short phrases, ending them on A.

What Chords Does A Minor Pentatonic Work Over?

It fits over Am, Am7 and Am9, over a 12-bar blues in A (A7–D7–E7), and over minor-key progressions like Am–G–F. Because it is also C major pentatonic, it works over songs in C major too.

Progressions to Practice A Minor Pentatonic Over

Am – G – F – G
A classic rock loop in A minor. Box 1 at the 5th fret covers the whole thing.
A7 – D7 – E7
A 12-bar blues in A. A minor pentatonic gives the classic bluesy sound over all three chords.

Songs That Use A Minor Pentatonic

Stairway to Heaven — Led Zeppelin
In A minor. Jimmy Page’s famous guitar solo is built on A minor pentatonic, mostly around Box 1 at the 5th fret.
House of the Rising Sun — The Animals
In A minor (Am–C–D–F–Am–E). A minor pentatonic is the natural choice for improvising over it.

Frequently Asked Questions

What fret does A minor pentatonic start on?

Box 1 covers frets 5–8, with the root note A at fret 5 on the low E string.

What notes are in A minor pentatonic?

A, C, D, E, and G — the intervals 1, ♭3, 4, 5, and ♭7.

Is A minor pentatonic the same as C major pentatonic?

They share the same five notes and the same box shapes. Treat A as home and it sounds minor; treat C as home and it sounds major.

What is the difference between A minor pentatonic and the A natural minor scale?

The A natural minor scale has seven notes (A B C D E F G). The pentatonic drops B and F, the two notes a half step from their neighbors, which is why it is hard to hit a wrong-sounding note with it.

Triads and Arpeggios in A Minor

The A minor triad (A · C · E) sits inside every A minor pentatonic box, so you can outline the chord without changing position. See its shapes in every inversion on the guitar triads page, and the minor 7 arpeggio across all six strings on the guitar arpeggios page. Full pages: A minor triads and the Am7 arpeggio.

CAGED Shapes in A Minor

Each A minor pentatonic box holds one shape of the Am chord: Box 1 the Em shape, Box 2 the Dm shape, Box 3 the Cm shape, Box 4 the Am shape and Box 5 the Gm shape. See how the five shapes connect up the neck in the CAGED system guide.

Explore Other Keys

A Minor E Minor B Minor F# Minor C# Minor G# Minor Eb Minor Bb Minor F Minor C Minor G Minor D Minor C Major G Major D Major A Major E Major B Major F# Major Db Major Ab Major Eb Major Bb Major F Major

See also: Minor pentatonic scale · Major pentatonic scale · Blues scale

← Read the full guide: How to Use Pentatonic Boxes